Salisbury Cathedral Organ - Covid Vaccination CD

[mw963]

A lovely idea:

https://www.expressandstar.com/news/uk-news/2021/03/29/cathedral-releases-album-of-organ-music-played-during-vaccinations/

Many years ago a cathedral not a million miles from me appointed - for the first time - an administrator. The first thing he did was bugger up the parking. The second thing he did was to ban daytime practice and lessons on the organ, as it "disturbed the guided tours".

I think the favourable public reaction to this organ playing at Salisbury proves what a fool he was. (I don't know if the ban is still in place...... )

[oddoneout]

A lovely idea indeed, and what an opportunity for those very many people(the majority I would suspect) working in and attending the cathedral vaccine centre to hear an instrument and repertoire that otherwise they never would. It might even sow a seed or two, and how wonderful would that be?

[mw963]

Absolutely.

That was my criticism of banning use of the organ during the day. It was the one chance that most of the population would have to hear an organ and thrill to the sound. And it was snuffed out.

[mopsus]

About a dozen years back, I was part of a visiting choir at a Cathedral in the South West - with 3 Sunday services timings were tight and we were not pleased to be told part way through the week that we would not be permitted to rehearse in the building immediately before Sunday evensong 'because it would disturb guided tours'. (We ignored this and rehearsed then anyway. No attempt was made to stop us.) A big change from a few years earlier when even the Cathedral shop there did not open on a Sunday. A couple of years later I visited with another choir and we rehearsed Kodaly's Missa Brevis (for a special service for licensing of lay readers) in a function room, shared with people chatting noisily as they set up lunch for the guests at the event - afterwards we didn't even receive a letter of thanks!

I'm happy to say that on recent visits things have gone much more smoothly - no such restrictions on rehearsing and a lovely new rehearsal room so no improvised locations elsewhere.

[cloughie]

If I visit a cathedral hearing the organ being played is a wonderful bonus - I could easily be bored by a guided tour - but then I suppose there’s no revenue in organ practising!
Isn’t Salisbury Cathedral one of the places where it is quite expensive to enter the House of God?

[mw963]

@ mopsus - how odd, the cathedral I was talking about is also in the south-west. Of course it can't be the same one, can it.....?

[oddoneout]

There's something rather warped I feel about the idea of practising the music for worship, in a place of worship, being seen as an undesirable intrusion...

[Pulcinella]

There's something rather warped I feel about the idea of practising the music for worship, in a place of worship, being seen as an undesirable intrusion...

Heaven forbid that it might encourage any of the paying visitors to stay on for the service!

[mopsus]

Isn’t Salisbury Cathedral one of the places where it is quite expensive to enter the House of God?

Salisbury is I believe pretty short of money at the moment - even before the pandemic tourism had dried up because of the Novichok poisoning in the city. For this reason (and not just because of Covid restrictions) the Cathedral is not taking visiting choirs until further notice. I'm not sure that that will save much money - without choral music congregations will be reduced and collections smaller.

As for the other Cathedral - it is a shame its clergy and music department could not stand up to their administrator and overrule them. Isn't that what Cathedral chapters are supposed to be able to do?

[teamsaint]

Salisbury is I believe pretty short of money at the moment - even before the pandemic tourism had dried up because of the Novichok poisoning in the city. For this reason (and not just because of Covid restrictions) the Cathedral is not taking visiting choirs until further notice. I'm not sure that that will save much money - without choral music congregations will be reduced and collections smaller.

As for the other Cathedral - it is a shame its clergy and music department could not stand up to their administrator and overrule them. Isn't that what Cathedral chapters are supposed to be able to do?

Salisbury has been struggling on visitor numbers ever since the new visitor centre at Stonehenge increased the time required to visit the stones, thus reducing the number of stops possible for coach trips which also take in any of Bath, Stonehenge and Winsdsor.

[mopsus]

Salisbury has been struggling on visitor numbers ever since the new visitor centre at Stonehenge increased the time required to visit the stones, thus reducing the number of stops possible for coach trips which also take in any of Bath, Stonehenge and Winsdsor.

Interesting - I haven't noticed or heard anyone in Bath (where I live) remarking that there were fewer coach day trips recently but pre-pandemic. Many here would be glad if the number of such trips went down, as these visitors contribute little to Bath's economy.

Going back to Salisbury, a guided visit up to the base of the 123m spire is well worth taking. We were offered one for free on a visiting choir week I was on some years ago. Best on a sunny day when you can watch the shadow of the spire moving round the close as you look!

[ardcarp]

thus reducing the number of stops

on any rebuild.

I think it's awful to reduce practice time at the chalk face. I have a dim and distant childhood memory (probably aged 5 or 6) of being taken into Lichfield Cathedral while the choir was practising. It had a stunning effect on me...the sheer beauty of sound wafting down from somewhere up there. Of course the opening hours of a cathedral for visitors can't have full-blast organ music all the time. In any case an organist or dep can practise after closing time...but not so a choir or visiting choir.

Another Lichfield memory dating from my sixth-form days. There was a flower festival and a continuous rota of organists was arranged to provide suitable background music for visitors. We were strictly informed that anything above mp was not allowed. Bit of a hard thing for a keen teenager let loose on a box of delights.

[teamsaint]

Interesting - I haven't noticed or heard anyone in Bath (where I live) remarking that there were fewer coach day trips recently but pre-pandemic. Many here would be glad if the number of such trips went down, as these visitors contribute little to Bath's economy.

Going back to Salisbury, a guided visit up to the base of the 123m spire is well worth taking. We were offered one for free on a visiting choir week I was on some years ago. Best on a sunny day when you can watch the shadow of the spire moving round the close as you look!

Basically, some of the coach trips had to cut out one stop, and they tended to miss out Salisbury rather than the others. Or so I was told by "a well placed industry source" a few years ago". IIRC, numbers a the cathedral went down a good 20% in the first year after the new Stonehenge centre opened. I don't think Bath was much affected.
Obviously Novichok didn't help much either. My experience is that visitor services are very well run at Salisbury.

[ardcarp]

York Minster 'Entrance' Fees:

"Admission prices are £11.50 for adults/seniors, £9 for students and free for accompanying children under 16."

OK I know cathedrals have to be kept standing, but let's say parents are visiting a student at York and all want to look round the Minster. £31 is a bit steep.

I think Salisbury has a 'guide price' of £8 per adult and £5 for kids between 13 - 16. But it also says:

"There is not a compulsory entry charge to the cathedral at the time of writing. You must pay for the tour of the spire but ALL other parts of the cathedral are free."

Exeter is still technically 'free' but a tourist is strongly encouraged to contribute £7,50 per adult, children being free.

Do please correct the above if any info is misleading.

[Pulcinella]

York Minster 'Entrance' Fees:

"Admission prices are £11.50 for adults/seniors, £9 for students and free for accompanying children under 16."

OK I know cathedrals have to be kept standing, but let's say parents are visiting a student at York and all want to look round the Minster. £31 is a bit steep.

I think Salisbury has a 'guide price' of £8 per adult and £5 for kids between 13 - 16. But it also says:

"There is not a compulsory entry charge to the cathedral at the time of writing. You must pay for the tour of the spire but ALL other parts of the cathedral are free."

Exeter is still technically 'free' but a tourist is strongly encouraged to contribute £7,50 per adult, children being free.

Do please correct the above if any info is misleading.

Not a correction, but the York fee at least allows free return visits for a year. Or it used to!
And free to attend a service, of course, but I don't think that you could get in that much earlier just saying you were going to the service: different entrance doors and queueing even in pre-Covid times.
All free for city residents, of course.

We suggested that they offered an annual ticket that we (as residents) could buy and offer to friends who came to stay, but that was not taken up.